Random Training No More: Your Periodized Plan for Progress

In my post about rocking your strength training results using periodization, I talked about why this system of planning ahead and varying your workouts is the sure path to steady progress. Periodization simply means manipulating your training variables in a structured way to prevent over-training and maximize results.

The birds-eye view of a periodized program is your whole training year (the macrocycle). Don’t panic; you don’t need to plan out every workout a year in advance.

For our purposes of being weight room warriors, all you need to know are your overall goals: Do you want to be stronger? Have more muscle definition? Get leaner? Change your lean muscle mass to body fat ratio? Know this goal and burn it into your mind.

Your Own Custom Plan

So how would you create a periodized program if you wanted, for example, to build a curvy backside and defined delts? You certainly would not train for muscle building every week or every day. Instead, you want to train at varying intensities in a structured manner, ensuring that you stay ahead of your body’s adaptations and avoid plateaus and overtraining.

In the above butt/delt-building example, you also need to train for strength so that you can lift heavier and heavier. An endurance (or stabilization) stage is needed to properly prepare your tendons and ligaments for the heavier training to come and also to ensure recovery (also called the deload stage).

Breaking Down Your Goal Into Stages

Once you know your overall goal, it’s time to think in terms of 3 to 6 week stages (called mesocycles). You’ll say goodbye to jumping to a new workout every week or changing it at random every few weeks.

Instead, you’ll have a specific goal for each 3 to 6 week period – and you’ll stick with it. Then you’ll move to the next 3 to 6 week stage, and so on. For example, if your overall goal is to build muscle mass, weeks 1 through 26 might look like this:

The main difference between these stages isn’t nutrition, types of exercises, or frequency of training – it’s intensity. To keep it simple, think of intensity as how many reps you do. Your last rep should be very difficult, but if it’s at the right weight, you could still do about two more. Sure, it’s good to go to failure for some of your strength exercises, but don’t do it for all lest you over-train.

If you use this guideline for intensity, you’ll use the appropriate weight, making sure to increase the weight each time it becomes too easy to do the prescribed number of reps. You can also use the number of sets and rest intervals to differentiate each stage. To pull all these variables together in a simplified manner, by stage:

Varying Each Week: The Microcycle

So once you know your overall goal and have mapped out your 3 to 6 week stages, what next? The third piece of a periodized program is the individual weeks, or the microcycles. You can approach this piece in a variety of ways, but here are two:

Create two or three workouts, depending on whether you train three full-body days or an upper/lower body split twice a week. For example, if you train your full body three times a week, create three different full-body workouts. You will rotate among these workouts throughout a given stage. What changes from workout to workout? A few variables, such as exercise order, a different exercise or version of an exercise, a different number of reps or sets (within proper range), tempo, or using a technique like pyramids. Don’t go changing it every time you work out – just rotate the same 2 or three workouts throughout the stage. When you start a new stage you’ll change the intensity.

You can also do something a little more random (and some say more effective) called undulating periodization. This type of program has you rotating among different stages within a week. For example, you’d do a strength-focused workout on day one, a hypertrophy-focused workout on day two, and an endurance-focused workout on day three. The next week could be in a different order. Just be sure to rotate the same three workouts throughout the stage.

Of course, throughout each stage you should be getting stronger and lifting heavier weight, because you’re pushing yourself and varying your workouts. I highly recommend a training log to track your workouts.

There you have it – mesocycles and microcycles in a nutshell. Questions? Drop me a line in the Comment box below.

27 Comments

Tony Schober

Hey Everyone,

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Sounds like you need to make a change in your workout program either you are not eating enough or you need to cut a few calories you may have reached a plateau. I would increase the amount of exercise you do and decrease your calories. Have you tried HIIT High Intensity Interval Training It works wonders I myself have lost 25 pounds and I am at 13-15% BF, but I still have that little bit left on my stomach, I have changed to HIIT training where you sprint for a min the walk for a min and you do that about 12 times so with a 5 min warmup and 5 min cool down. Everybody has a setpoint somepeople carry more weight than others, but to get those last few pounds off you really need to focus on your diet and increase your exercise program. Google HIIT and check out low glycemic index diets dont eliminate carbs, but dont consume sugar, and eat the right carbs, the right fats, and the proper amount of protien there are all sorts of articles about this online, The key is to stick with it those first 50 pounds will likely be easier to lose than the last 10 good luck consistency is the key.

You’re probably still carrying some fat in that area. Some people carry any excess body fat in their stomach area and others not so much (that’s where my body fat goes). Strengthen your abdominal muscles, avoid salty foods (for less water retention), and if you think you could lose a few more pounds, aim to get your optimal number of calories each day.

I am at the stage in my weight training where I am not interested in adding any muscle mass. I’m only interested in muscle definition and added strength. Does this plan naturally add mass, and if so, is it recommended for someone who isn’t interested in adding muscle mass? Would I need to make any adjustments?

Yes – if you don’t want to put on more muscle, skip the hypertrophy stage. Since the intensity and number of reps/sets will determine your results, focus on low volume with heavy resistance (see the “Strength Stage” variables above). Do more Olympic lift-style exercises that use your whole body too (clean to press, squat to press, one-arm dumbbell snatch). The best way to attain muscle definition is to lower body fat. This goal will go along nicely with strength, because you’ll want to keep your diet in check as to not build too much muscle.

I workout and workout and do not see results,my muscles do not appear.
I am 52 years old and attended fitness for years, now only workout at home.
Workout 4x a week full body workout and after
a few minutes of training shoulders and triceps or biceps.
I try to eat healthy foods,in the summer I ride my bike about 30,40,50 km per day.
But what I would really like to develop my shoulders, Earn defined muscles.
Is not easy to make a workout plan or the duration.
Thanks

Hi Helga- Your body has adapted, you need to add more change. If you don’t want to create 3 workouts you can rotate between, then you need to at least change your workouts every 4 to 6 weeks. This does NOT include the changes you need to make every week or every session. They can be small changes, and you CAN do this on the fly. (1) Keep a workout log and record what you do, (2) Each time you work out, look at the last session, now (3) do something slightly different – a different grip, weight, number of reps, sets, order of exercises, etc. Then in 4-6 weeks change something big, such as the exercises. For cycling, do some sprints once a week. Check out this article too http://coachcalorie.com/how-to-get-defined-arms-shoulders/

This is a great article. I’m 27 and a zumba instructor. I had a baby a year ago and I’m trying to get back into shape. I teach 3 times a week and have come to the point where my body is used to it. I also go to the gym 4x a week and take spin and do some weight lifting. I’m getting discouraged because I go to the gym and after a spin class I’d like to have a great lifting session but I don’t know what to do or how to plan my workouts. My husband suggests working out legs one day, backs and biceps another and so on… The thing is, I need help figuring out how to get a productive workout while my child is at the kiddie corner where I have a 2 hour limit.

I’m very self conscious about my arms and want to get them toned and nicely shaped but I don’t think the workouts I’m doing are getting me there. I guess my questions is how many exercises should I be doing each workout session for triceps, biceps, shoulders, chest etc.? How many times a week should I be lifting? And how often should I be working out each muscle group?

Also, I’ve been trying to be more conscious of what I eat and have been making small changes when it comes to my eating habits. I haven’t lost any weight. And it’s very frustrating. My clothes are fitting a little looser, but the scale says I’ve gained!

Hi Melina- As they say, you can’t out train a bad diet. You’re exercising a lot but need to focus on diet first and foremost. Find out your daily calorie intake and stick to it. You may need to make bigger changes. Being as you’re pressed for time and mostly a beginner, you should stick with a full-body weights workout 3x/week. You can get it done in an hour or less. Do one or two exercises for each muscle group in a circuit or do supersets. For a circuit, do three exercises in a row, such as a chest press, squat, and row, rest 60 seconds, and repeat for one more sets. Then move on to three more exercises, like pushups, deadlift, and lat pulldown. After that switch muscle groups – shoulders, triceps, and biceps. Be sure to increase the loads as you progress and change things up as I describe. Arms require a low body fat to shape up. Be consistent and it will happen!

Interesting article! I certainly appreciate your advice about breaking my goals down into stages to make it all manageable. I’ve never been friends with math before, but it will be a pleasure to apply this insight into maximizing my training results!

so i am a little confused. i generally lift within the 10-12 rep range, but on a previous response i’ve read, you mentioned that if you didnt want to put on more muscle to move to the strength stage (1-6 reps). i mostly want to become leaner and have a more toned look; whats the best way of achieving that?

i honestly never usually lift below 8 reps – should i be doing the 1-6 rep range?

Hi Megan,
I think everyone, regardless of whether they want to build mass, should work on strength on a regular basis. That means working in the lower rep range. Most women will benefit by lifting in the 10-12 range for “toning” because they don’t lift heavy enough to put on mass. Just be sure to cycle in some lower and higher rep days too to stay ahead of your body’s adaptations.

Integrate varying rep ranges throughout each week. That is, use hypertrophy reps/sets/rest in session one, strength for session two, and endurance for session three, repeating the following week and changing the order from time to time. I think you’ll get nice results this way.

So I do 20 reps 3 times fantastic help with pt but these 20 reps are killer on last 10 but work. i’m getting stronger so weights are being heavy each time ive being told in 4 weeks we go into the strengh stage.

If my goal was to have overall muscle gain which way should I approach the periodized plan?

Should I go with alternating 2-3 programs within the mesocycle or should I go with alternating 3 programs within the microcycle? Also would you suggest over all body workout programs for muscle gains or upper/lower split?